2015 Volunteer Awards

FIREFIGHTER OF THE YEAR – KEVIN WEBER – Kevin is a key member from the Marble, Station 83 crew. Ever since Kevin started with CRFPD he has been a non-stop force. Kevin completed his Firefighter 1 certification course in 2015 and in December was appointed as a fire lieutenant by a vote of his fellow volunteers. Kevin’s positive attitude and desire to be an excellent firefighter along with a motor that won’t quit make him a great addition to the fire district and his community as well.

EMT OF THE YEAR – ASHLEY BUSS – Ashley joined as a volunteer in 2014. From the very start, Ashley jumped in as a volunteer member performing shifts at Station 81. In 2015 Ashley has shown her dedication to her community, going on many calls, participating in hundreds of hours of training and even pulling extra volunteer shifts when we really needed the help. Ashley is truly a special person who’s dedication and compassion make her the EMT of the Year.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR – CORY CLOSE – Cory joined the fire district in 2015. Cory wasted no time in getting involved, signing up for numerous shifts at Station 81. Cory has already completed his Firefighter I certification course and is signed up for the EMT-Basic course starting this month in Carbondale. We look forward to many great years with Cory here at CRFPD.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER – BILL SHANK – Bill has been a long time member of the ambulance and fire crews at CRFPD. This year, Bill was elected as an EMS lieutenant by the members. Bill has been a regular member of our On-Duty shift crew for many years. Bill is also a member of the Volunteer Membership Committee and his many years of experience along with his desire to help others has made him a great mentor to the people that work with Bill. Bill Shank is truly a Most Valuable Player!

MOST CALLS – RAY SAUVEY – Ray Sauvey is a long time member at CRFPD and a valuable member of our EMS crew. Ray is a fixture on our Friday night crew as well as responding to emergencies whenever the pager goes off. As a volunteer, Ray responded to over 140 calls in 2015, the most volunteer responses in the District. For over 10 years, we have always been able to count on Ray to be there when the bell goes off. Thanks Ray!

TRAINING “MONSTER” – ASHLEY BUSS – Ashley Buss has a great desire to keep on learning. Ashely completed over 250 hours of training in 2015. This is in addition to many hours spent on duty performing volunteer shifts at Station 81. Ashley participated in a Firefighter 1 course, along with completing our Wildland S130/190 firefighting course. Ashley is also signed up for the Colorado Mountain College Paramedic Program for 2016. Ashley Buss is truly a training “Monster”.

AMBULANCE DRIVER OF THE YEAR – RAY BOURG – For quite some time now, Ray Bourg has been one of the most valuable members of CRFPD’s EMS services. As a driver for the ambulance service, Ray has faithfully shown up for overnight volunteer shifts every week! Ray Bourg makes sure that the crew gets to an incident safely, he assists with patient care and equipment and then delivers the patient and crew safely to the hospital. We are very grateful for the dedication and skill that Ray brings to every shift and ambulance call to which he responds.

LEADERSHIP AWARD – TOM MORELLI – Tom Morelli is a Fire lieutenant at Station 84 in the west end of the District. For many years now, Tom has been a great leader for the fire district and his community as well. Tom mentors many of the volunteers at Station 84. In the past several years, Tom was instrumental in making sure that our members were trained and ready as we placed two new fire apparatus at Station 84. Tom is not only a leader around the fire station but on the fire ground as well. Tom Morelli always puts the safety of his crew at the top of the list, showing everyone around him what the definition of a great leader really means.

MOST IMPROVED – ALISON HAFER – Alison has been with CRFPD since 2014. Alison has been a valuable member of the On-Duty volunteer EMS crews at Station 81. In 2015, Alison’s commitment to excellence has continued as she successfully completed the Firefighter 1 certification course and Wildland Firefighter certification to go along with already being an excellent EMT. Way to go Alison!

LIFESAVER AWARD – CARLA CALLAHAN, RON KROESEN, RAY BOURG, KEVIN WEBER, PAUL LUTTRELL, MIKE WAGNER – This crew of folks responded to a call in the south end of the District where a patient was severely injured in a construction accident. The victim suffered critical injuries in a remote location that required their very best under very difficult circumstances. From the ED physicians to the family of the patient, everyone involved agreed that this crew’s actions absolutely saved the patient’s life. Very nicely done!

SAFETY AWARD – PAUL (PABLO) HERR – Pablo has been an integral part of the operations at CRFPD for a number of years now. Pablo is a firefighter/EMT with CRFPD. In addition, Pablo is a certified Life Safety Educator. In 2015 Pablo spent many hours and days delivering fire and life safety education to a wide variety of people and groups in the CRFPD communities. Everything from fire station tours, school education programs, giving out fire and life safety education materials while performing free blood pressure checks at public events to educating folks at our senior housing facilities! Pablo has a passion for helping people become more safe at work, home and play. Thank you so much Pablo.

EVER READY AWARD – MIKE GILFRY – Mike Gilfry has given 35 years of volunteer service at CRFPD. Mike has been an integral part of our EMS service for every one of those years. Mike has been in the middle of some of the most memorable and difficult incidents in our history. Even more remarkable is the fact that despite having given so many great years to his community, Mike continues to be one of the most valuable people that we have here. Mike has been performing on duty volunteer shifts since they started at Station 81, even doing 2 shifts per week for several of those years. Mike Gilfry really is “Ever Ready” and he is a great example of selfless service to us all.

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD – RON LEACH This award comes from the volunteer membership. The members award this distinction to a staff member who they believe represents the best of who we are and what we do. In 2015, the volunteers voted Fire Chief Ron Leach as the staff member who best reflected what distinguished service means. Ron has been the Chief for over 35 years. Ron Leach has led CRFPD through those years with integrity, humility and courage. There are so many significant events that have occurred over the years involving CRFPD including, the Mid-Continent Mine disaster (1981), Rocky Mountain Natural Gas building explosion in Glenwood Springs (1985), The Mossbarger bulk plant fire in downtown Carbondale (1983), the first Panorama Ranch fire (1988), Storm King Mountain Fire (1994), Coal Seam Fire (2002), the second Panorama Ranch fire (2002), the Pearlington Project, post-Hurricane Katrina (2005), the County Road 100 fire (2006), the Red Canyon Fire (2013) to name a few. Through 35 years of events, both joyful and tragic, Ron Leach has led the people of CRFPD. Even more, Ron Leach has represented the good people in the communities of the fire district with dedication, integrity and honor. Distinguished service for sure.

YEARS OF SERVICE RECOGNITIONCRFPD is blessed to have a large number of folks who have served and been a part of this great organization for many years. We really do stand on the shoulders of those who have come before us.10 YEARS SERVICE- HANK VAN BERLO, DANIELLE RESCHKE20 YEARS SERVICE – MARC BASSETT35 YEARS SERVICE – BILL GAVETTE, KAREN TAFEJIAN, MIKE KENNEDY, BILL SHANK